With a sixth season speculated to be focused on Beth Dutton and Rip Wheeler, Kelly Reilly is one of the most popular characters of Taylor Sheridan’s neo-Western Yellowstone. The actress is reportedly far from her ruthless and troubled character, who is known for being relentless in her pursuit to support her father.

While the character has often caused viewers to disapprove of her actions, Beth Dutton still remains extremely popular and Reilly has mentioned how it has changed the way people look at her. She mentioned that she understood the impact of Beth when she saw people dressed as her for Halloween.

Kelly Reilly Saw People Dressed As Her Yellowstone Character Beth Dutton For Halloween

When fans meet her in real life, Kelly Reilly said that they are usually surprised to find her very unlike her Yellowstone character Beth Dutton. While it might be disappointing for fans, it just proves how good of an actress Reilly is and how much the character has impacted the fans.

Reilly’s Beth is the daughter of Kevin Costner’s John Dutton and she is extremely devoted to him. Extremely guilt-ridden for playing a part in her mother’s death, Beth has a complex relationship with her hometown, especially her brother Jamie, who she had a traumatic experience with.

Kelly Reilly mentioned that she did not really understand the cultural impact of the character and Beth’s popularity among Yellowstone fans until she saw someone dressed as Beth for Halloween. She said to the LA Times,

Halfway into the second season, I started to feel there was more conversation about her. People dressed up as her on Halloween. That’s when I started to realize that she had entered the zeitgeist. It’s been fascinating to watch and — I’ll be honest, as an actor — slightly intimidating and a little bit scary.

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She mentioned that Beth has elicited a polarizing response as some see her as a hero while some hate her. She said that neither of them was wrong and that was the USP of the character.

Taylor Sheridan Apparently Writes Unapologetic Women

One of the highlights of Taylor Sheridan’s Yellowstone is its characters. Apart from capturing the great American West, the show also portrays real characters with complexities and Shakespearean characterizations, that have made them fan-favorites. Everyone has their side of the story and they all make sense.

While Kelly Reilly’s Beth has slowly become one of the most divisive characters in the show, with many disapproving of her mean attitude, Reilly mentioned that Sheridan wrote such female characters who were unapologetic and had depth to them. She also said that it was a challenge for her to navigate that (via LA Times),

Taylor writes women with great love, but with great complexity. They are unapologetic. Men are never written as strong male characters. They’re just themselves. It was that attitude and energy that Taylor wrote in Beth and all of her toxic fabulousness….It was a quality that did not come easy for me. How do you play a woman like that and also get people on her side?

The actress mentioned that she found that side of the character exciting and as an actor it pumped her up. She also mentioned that hating or disregarding her character would be doing a disservice on her part.